Confused Heap of Facts
Episodes
Episode 77 - Reassessing Meade with Dr. Zach Fry
01 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. Jonathan Abel and Dr. Bill Nance are joined by Dr. Zach Fry to reassess George Meade. They begin with the popular image of him as having commanded...
Episode 76 - Reassessing Eisenhower
01 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. Jonathan Abel and Dr. Bill Nance reassess Dwight Eisenhower as a commander in World War 2. They discuss his background, his qualifications, and ho...
Episode 75 - Reassessing Bernadotte with Dr. Mike Bonura
01 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. Bill Nance hosts a reassessment of Marshal Jean-Baptiste Bernadotte, future King Karl XIV Johan of Sweden, with Dr. Jonathan Abel and Dr. Mike Bon...
Episode 74 - Special Guest COL Diven
01 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Drs. Jonathan Abel and Bill Nance host special guest COL. Ethan Diven, Provost and Command and General Staff College Deputy Commandant. They discuss h...
Episode 73 - Villanueva on Amphibious Operations in World War II
01 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Drs. Jonathan Abel and Bill Nance are joined by special guest MAJ James Villanueva, PhD, US Army Mission Command Training Protocol, to discuss US Army...
Episode 72 - Reassessing Westmoreland with Dr. Martin Clemis
01 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. Jonathan Abel and co-host Dr. Bill Nance launch a new series in which we reassess commanders who have been given a good or bad reputation by histo...
Episode 71 – DiMarco on Replacements and Reconstitution in WWII
01 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
FM 3-0 Operations 2025 says that “Some combination of maneuver and attrition is typically necessary to achieve victory during armed conflict.” Dr....
Episode 70 – Operation Southern Watch with Dr. John Kuehn
10 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. Jonathan Abel and Dr. Bill Nance talk Operation Southern Watch with Dr. John Kuehn, US Navy (Retired). They explain why Desert Storm wasn’t actu...
Episode 69 – Preparing for MDO: WW2 with Dr. Bill Nance
01 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. Jonathan Abel sits down with Dr. Bill Nance to discuss how the US Army prepared for World War II. They begin with the period of austerity in the 1...
Episode 68 – Moseman on Strategic Military Intelligence 1882-1947
01 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. Jonathan Abel, joined by Dr. Bill Nance, talk with Dr. Scott Moseman about strategic military intelligence between its birth in the US and the end...
Episode 67 – Special Guest Dr. Sanders Marble on Casualty Care
01 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Drs. Jonathan Abel and Bill Nance are joined by Drs. Mark Gerges and Sanders Marble, Senior Historian at the US Army Office of Medical History, for a ...
Episode 66 – Nagel on Race Relations in the US Army in World War 2
01 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. Jonathan Abel, joined by Dr. Bill Nance, completes the trilogy on race relations in the US Army with Dr. Amanda Nagel by looking at the period fro...
Episode 65 – Bonura on Napoleonic Officers
01 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Drs. Jonathan Abel and Bill Nance discuss Napoleonic officers with Dr. Mike Bonura of DJIMO. They explain where the officers came from and how they we...
Episode 64 – Special Guest Dr. Sam Watson
01 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Drs. Jonathan Abel and Bill Nance sit down with special guest Dr. Sam Watson from the US Military Academy at West Point. They have a wide-ranging disc...
Episode 63 – He Who Desires Peace, Let Him Prepare for War:” Hosler Talks Vegetius
01 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. Jonathan Abel is joined by Dr. John Hosler to discuss the Roman military theorist Vegetius. They discuss Vegetius’s work and its themes. They tr...
Episode 62 – Clemis on Twentieth-Century Vietnamese Politics
01 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Drs. Jonathan Abel and Bill Nance continue their discussions about Vietnam with Dr. Martin Clemis. They dive into Vietnamese politics throughout the t...
Episode 61.5 – Schedule Announcement
23 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
A short of announcement that we'll be moving to a once-a-month model for CHF instead of the twice -a-month.
Episode 61 – Brown on Eisenhower’s New Look
15 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. Jonathan Abel is joined by Dr. Gates Brown to discuss Eisenhower’s New Look policy. They outline the background to Eisenhower’s strategic vie...
Episode 60 – Rafuse on the 1862 Valley Campaign
01 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. Jonathan Abel is joined by Dr. Bill Nance to discuss the 1862 Valley Campaign of the U.S. Civil War with Dr. Ethan Rafuse. They discuss the backg...
Episode 59 – Abel on Early Modern European Military Theorists
15 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. Bill Nance interviews Dr. Jonathan Abel about military theory during the early modern period, especially in France. They discuss the gap in knowl...
Episode 58 - Kuehn talks JC Wiley
01 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. Jonathan Abel is joined by Dr. Bill Nance and guest Dr. John Kuehn to talk about an under appreciated theorist: JC Wiley. They discuss his backgr...
Episode 57 – Clemis on Dau Tranh
15 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Drs. Jonathan Abel and Bill Nance sit down with Dr. Martin Clemis to discuss Vietnamese communist strategy in the Vietnam War, especially what is know...
Episode 56 – Nagel on Race Relations in the US Army 1900-1918
01 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Drs. Jonathan Abel and Bill Nance are back with Dr. Amanda Nagel to talk race relations in the US Army in the early twentieth century. The dig into s...
Episode 55 – Babb on the Russo-Japanese War
15 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. Jonathan Abel, with Dr. Bill Nance, talks with Dr. Geoff Babb about one of the most important twentieth-century conflicts: the Russo-Japanese War....
Episode 54 – LTC Hatzinger on the US Army Mortuary Service
31 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Drs. Jonathan Abel and Bill Nance talk to LTC Kyle Hatzinger, PhD, from the Department of Sustainment and Force Management, about the US Army Mortuary...
Episode 53 – Abel on the French Revolution
15 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Drs. Jonathan Abel and Bill Nance discuss the French Revolution. They explore its origins and its various stages. They discuss the different groups ...
Episode 52 – Whitford on British Leadership in the Early 20th Century
01 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. Jonathan Abel and Dr. Bill Nance are back with LTC Andy Whitford, PhD, of DDE to discuss British army leadership in the early twentieth century. ...
Episode 51 – Gerges on Napoleonic Cavalry in the Peninsular War
01 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. Jonathan Abel and Dr. Bill Nance talk with Dr. Mark Gerges, Napoleonist, about Napoleonic-era cavalry in the Peninsular War. They begin by descri...
Episode 50 – On the Road at the 2024 CRE
01 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. Jonathan Abel is on the road at the 2024 meeting of the Consortium on the Revolutionary Era in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. His first discussion is wi...
Episode 49 – Jennings on Winfield Scott
14 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. Jonathan Abel, with Dr. Bill Nance, talks to LTC Nate Jennings, PhD, of DJIMO about the life and career of Winfield Scott. They discuss the early ...
Episode 48 – Hosler on Crusades and Crusading
01 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. Jonathan Abel sits down with Dr. John Hosler, DMH medievalist, to discuss the Crusades and Crusading. They examine the terminology and interrogat...
Episode 47 – Nagel on Race Relations in the US Army 1865-1906
22 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Drs. Jonathan Abel and Bill Nance talk with Dr. Amanda Nagel about race relations in the US Army between the Civil War and World War 2. They discuss ...
Episode 46 – Hull on International Law
01 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. Jonathan Abel, joined by Dr. Bill Nance, talk international law with Dr. Mark Hull. He examines the effects of World War 2, especially the Nuremb...
Episode 45 – Zinsou on French Politics in WW2
15 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. Jonathan Abel and Dr. Bill Nance discuss French politics before and during World War 2 with Dr. Cameron Zinsou. They analyze the impact of World ...
Episode 44 – Babb on Stilwell
15 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. Jonathan Abel, with Dr. Bill Nance, discusses the career of General “Vinegar Joe” Stilwell before and during World War II with DMH China exper...
Episode 43 - Whitford on Britain in the Vietnam Era
01 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Drs. Jonathan Abel and Bill Nance meet with special guest LTC Andy Whitford, PhD, of the Department of Distance Education, about Britain during the Vi...
Episode 42 - Jennings on the 1973 War
15 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. Jonathan Abel, joined by Dr. Bill Nance, talks with special guest LTC Nate Jennings, PhD, of the Department of Joint, Interagency, and Multination...
Episode 41 - Abel and Nance on Professionalism
01 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Drs. Jonathan Abel and Bill Nance interview each other about a key element of modern militaries: professionalism. Dr. Abel discusses what constituted ...
Episode 40 - DiMarco on Urban Warfare
15 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. Jonathan Abel, joined by Dr. Bill Nance, discusses urban warfare with the dean of the subject, Dr. Lou DiMarco. They discover the unique nature of...
Episode 39 - Kuehn on Mahan
01 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Drs. Jonathan Abel and Bill Nance talk with Dr. John Kuehn about the naval theorist Alfred Mahan. He explains Mahan's background and why he chose the ...
Episode 38 - Clemis on Pacification in Vietnam
16 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Drs. Jonathan Abel and Bill Nance talk with Dr. Martin Clemis about pacification efforts during the conflicts in Vietnam in the mid-twentieth century....
Episode 37 - Schneider on Limiting War
01 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Drs. Jonathan Abel and Bill Nance talk with Dr. Benjamin Schneider about efforts to limit war via law between the US Civil War and the mid-twentieth c...
Episode 36 - Periodization with Hosler
15 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. Jonathan Abel is joined by Dr. Bill Nance and Dr. John Hosler to nerd out about a controversial topic in historiography: periodization. They dis...
Episode 35 - Cotter on the 2003 Iraq Invasion
01 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. Bill Nance, joined by Dr. Jonathan Abel, talk to Dr. Dave Cotter about the 2003 US invasion of Iraq. Dr. Cotter outlines his role in the invasion,...
Episode 34 - Bonura on French Influences on the US Army
15 Jul 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. Jonathan Abel and Dr. Bill Nance sit down with special guest Dr. Mike Bonura of DJIMO to discuss the French influences on the US Army from its ear...
Episode 33 - Kuehn on the Strategic Roots of WW2 in the Asia-Pacific
01 Jul 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. Jonathan Abel is joined by Dr. Bill Nance to discuss the deep roots of the Asia-Pacific theater(s) of World War 2 with Dr. John Kuehn. Dr. Kuehn a...
Episode 32 - Vietnam Vets
15 Jun 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. Jonathan Abel is joined by Drs. Martin Clemis and Bill Nance in a very special episode where they talk to three Vietnam War veterans about their e...
Episode 31 - Jennings and Nance on Cavalry
02 Jun 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. Jonathan Abel is joined by LTC Nate Jennings, PhD, and DR. Bill Nance to discuss the history and evolution of cavalry. They begin in the earliest ...
Episode 30 - Dutch Army Historians
16 May 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. Jonathan Abel, joined by Dr. Bill Nance, hosts a very special episode with two historians from the Royal Dutch Army, Marco Middelwijk and Jaus Mü...
Episode 29 - Riotto on US Civil War POWs
02 May 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. Jonathan Abel, joined by Dr. Bill Nance, discuss US Civil War POWs with Dr. Angela Riotto. She explains how a soldier might become a POW and what ...
Episode 28 - On the Road at the 2023 SMH
15 Apr 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. Jonathan Abel is on the road at the 2023 meeting of the Society for Military History in San Diego, California, speaking with a variety of military...
Episode 27 - Jennings on the US Army and History
01 Apr 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. Jonathan Abel is joined by Dr. Bill Nance to examine with LTC Nate Jennings, PhD, how the US Army uses history. They discuss the role of history i...
Episode 26 - Ringgenberg on US Army Signals in WWI
15 Mar 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. Jonathan Abel is joined by Dr. Bill Nance to discuss US Army signals with Professor Dirk Ringgenberg. They begin by dissecting the origins of th...
Episode 25 - Fry On US Civil War Battlefields
01 Mar 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. Jonathan Abel is joined by Dr. Bill Nance to discuss US battlefields with Dr. Zach Fry, especially Civil War battlefields. They explore what con...
Episode 24 - On the Road at the 2023 CRE
15 Feb 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. Jonathan Abel goes on the road at the 2023 meeting of the Consortium on the Revolutionary Era, a yearly conference dedicated to the history of the...
Episode 23 - Kuehn on the US Navy during and after World War I
03 Feb 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. John Kuehn joins Drs. Jonathan Abel and Angela Riotto to discuss the 1910s and 1920s US Navy. He begins by explaining the nature of the Navy and...
Episode 22 - Cotter on the Holocaust
16 Jan 2023
Contributed by Lukas
DMH Director and instructor Dr. Dave Cotter joins host Dr. Jonathan Abel and Dr. Angela Riotto to discuss the Holocaust. He outlines its various ele...
Episode 21 - Dean On Doctrine
17 Nov 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Special guest LTC Nikki Dean of the US Army Combined-Arms Doctrine Directorate (CADD) joins host Dr. Jonathan Abel and Dr. Angela Riotto to discuss do...
Episode 20 - Sterrett on Wargaming
01 Nov 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Special guest Dr. James Sterrett, Deputy Director in the Directorate of Simulation Education at CGSC, joins Dr. Jonathan Abel to discuss the history a...
Episode 19 - Babb on China's "Century of Humiliation"
15 Oct 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. Geoff Babb joins Dr. Jonathan Abel and Dr. Angela Riotto to talk about China's "Century of Humiliation," referring to the period from around 1840 ...
Episode 18 - Maxwell on the Racial Integration of the US Army
03 Oct 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. Jeremy Maxwell joins Dr. Jonathan Abel and Dr. Angela Riotto to talk about the racial integration of the US Army in the mid-twentieth century. H...
Episode 17 - Demystifying Deterrence Theorists with Kalic
15 Sep 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. Sean Kalic, DMH Master Instructor, talks with Drs. Jonathan Abel and Angela Riotto about deterrence theory in the twentieth century. They begin ...
Episode 16 - Hospodor on the Sicilian Campaign in WW2
01 Sep 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Special guest Dr. Greg Hospodor of TRADOC talks to Dr. Jonathan Abel about the Sicilian Campaign in World War 2. He explains the planning and strate...
Episode 15 - Hanson on the US Army in the Korean War
15 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. Tom Hanson talks with Dr. Jonathan Abel about the US Army before and during the Korean War. They begin with a discussion of the draw-down in for...
Episode 14 - Zinsou on Southern France in World War 2
01 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. Cameron Zinsou joins Dr. Jonathan Abel to discuss a lesser-known theater in World War 2: Southern France. He discusses the planning for Operatio...
Episode 13 - CGSC Student Panel on History
15 Jul 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. Jonathan Abel, joined by Dr. Bill Nance, talks to a panel of award-winning students from the AY22 CGSC class. They discuss the importance of his...
Episode 12 - Jennings on Texas Frontier Cavalry
14 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. Nate Jennings talks to Dr. Jonathan Abel, joined by Dr. Bill Nance, about cavalry on the Texas frontier. He outlines how the cavalry tradition b...
Episode 11 - War Crimes Panel at the Dole Institute
01 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
A very special podcast episode: the audio from a panel on war crimes in World War 2, featuring Drs. Mark Hull and Benjamin M. Schneider. Hull and Sc...
Episode 10 - Brown on Eisenhower in Korea
15 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. Gates Brown talks to Dr. Jonathan Abel, joined by Dr. Bill Nance, about Dwight Eisenhower and the Korean War. He details Eisenhower's background...
Episode 9 - Abel on the Military Enlightenment
01 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. Jonathan Abel joins Dr. Bill Nance to discuss the Military Enlightenment, a relatively new field of historiography. He details how early-modern ...
Episode 8 - Hull on Nazi German Propagandists
15 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. Mark Hull joins Dr. Abel and Dr. Bill Nance to discuss the post-World War II trials of Nazi propagandists Veit Harlan, Fritz Hippler, and Philipp ...
Episode 7 - Hosler on Jerusalem
01 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. John Hosler joins Dr. Jonathan Abel, along with Dr. Bill Nance, to discuss the military history of Jerusalem. Hosler explains how Jerusalem figu...
Episode 6 - Kuehn on the Washington Naval Conference
15 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. John Kuehn joins Dr. Abel to talk about the Washington Naval Conference, a meeting of the world powers after World War I that attempted to ratchet...
Episode 5 - Nance talks Simpson, WW2
15 Feb 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. Bill Nance joins Dr. Abel to talk about General William Simpson, commander of 9th Army in the European Theater of Operations in World War 2. Nan...
Episode 4 - Mills on the Berlin Wall
26 Jan 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. Abel, joined by Dr. Bill Nance, interviews Dr. Dave Mills, early Cold-War historian, on the Berlin Wall. We discuss why it was built, what it re...
Episode 3 - Laver talks Grant
26 Jan 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. Abel, joined by Dr. Bill Nance, interviews Dr. Harry Laver, one of CGSC's Civil War experts, on the life and career of US Grant. Dr. Laver discu...
Episode 2 - Clemis on Vietnam
26 Jan 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. Abel, joined by Dr. John Hosler, interviews Dr. Martin Clemis on Vietnam, discussing the war's origins, the difficulties of prosecuting the war fr...
Episode 1 - Abel and Gerges talk Napoleon
10 Jan 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. Hosler interviews Drs. Jonathan Abel and Mark Gerges, DMH Napoleonists, on the great man himself. We talk about military leadership, philosophy,...